I'll admit that aesthetics attracted me first. But I've since mixed several pitchers of mojitos and other tasty things with this stirrer and it's as proficient at its job as it is at looking good. If you're in need of a cocktail stirrer, you can pick up this one here.

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Found: via...I think a CB2 print catalog. Some of the online reviews mention that the weld between the spoon and handle is not very strong. Like many CB2 things...I picked over the selection in the store to find the most sturdy-looking weld.

Dug up some old photos I took in the park near our place when we lived in Chicago, from February 2006:

It's rounding the end of March here in Northern California, and we realized we've gone two winters without seeing snow (we haven't made it to Tahoe, and this past winter, both Chicago & Maryland were sans-snow when we made our holiday family visits).

The first photo with flash was accidental, but also nice—will keep that in mind for future snowy-day shooting. The remainder of the photos capture the quiet stillness of that night in the park.

This afternoon's culinary adventure:
grapefruit + avocado + lemon juice + dijon mustard + olive oil + kosher salt + coarse-ground pepper

Original post came from here. The salad is delicious and easy, with seasonal (late winter/early spring) Northern California produce. I totally butchered the avocado today, but that made the salad no less delicious. The fragrant, slightly bitter citrus + creamy avocado pair really well with the dressing, which is tangy and flavorful. And the colors. The colors are pretty great. Lastly, it doesn't hurt that I have a weakness for grapefruit, dijon mustard, and lemon.

Revisions:
I made the lemon juice:olive oil ratio closer to 1:1 (rather than 1:2). Didn't miss the fat. Also, because I'm lazy and currently lack a dishwasher (we're about to start a remodel on our house), I put all the dressing ingredients into a little jar and just shook the heck out of it (rather than whisking it together in a bowl). To avoid avocado butchery, I recommend following the recipe's instruction to scoop out the avocado first, then slice it (I felt compelled to slice within-skin for some reason).

P.S. Note for Silicon Valley readers: Hamada Farms has awesome citrus right now at the Mountain View Farmer's Market.

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Found: via Pinterest...via acozykitchen.com, via an Ina Garten recipe from this episode of Barefoot Contessa.

 

I picked up this set of four teacups a few years ago in Chicago's Chinatown. I love the mixture of geometric and floral patterns. Also excellent for pouring small, quick-cooling servings of tea.

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Found via: browsing Woks 'n' Things where I picked up two single teacups—the cherry blossom & vertical line pattern. We atually broke one of the cups, but later I noticed a complete, boxed set of four at Ten Ren Teahouse and snapped them up.

There's something about traditional Asian tailoring, which in my head = rectangular/boxy patterns cut with lots of room, that are then pieced together simply and allowed to drape loosely from the body. The silhouettes are flowy yet architectural at the same time. This sweater has that going on.

It's also very cozy and lightweight (it's 50/50 cotton & linen), yet provides noticeable warmth when worn on top of other layers.

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Found: while browsing Free People's sale section. Note, I got the "indigo" color which is much more blue than the photographs they provide.

Little social things: I really enjoy getting great gifts that I otherwise wouldn't have purchased on my own. Example: this amazing statement-piece necklace, one of this year's Christmas gifts from my sister-in-law and brother. It's very much my style, but I don't think I would've noticed it on my own. Lucky for me, I know some good gift-givers.

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This was sold at Macy's, but is now out-of-stock. Details from Macy's: "Crafted in burnished gold, burnished silver, rose gold and hematite tone mixed metal. Approximate length: 16-1/2 inches + 3-inch extender."

My husband unequivocally loves cranberries in all forms. So a few years ago when we discovered how easy it is to make whole-berry cranberry sauce, he immediately declared cranberry sauce to be his domain for all holiday meals. We started with the recipe from the back of the package (1 cup water, 1 cup sugar, 12 oz. of fresh cranberries), and eventually evolved the recipe to replace half the sugar with honey, and added the zest of one orange and one lemon. The sauce was tart and sweet with aromatic citrus notes complemented by the mellowness of honey, and had a nice chunky texture.

We thought we'd achieved cranberry sauce perfection. But last weekend at a friend's party, we chatted with Emily Olson, co-founder of Foodzie.com, who mentioned a recipe that included cranberries roasted with sugar and bourbon. Since my husband is of the opinion that all cooking should involve bourbon, the next day he went to work researching this fabled concoction. After tweaking his recipe quite a bit, the results were even better: more robust cranberry flavor and texture, and a creamy-smooth finish from the bourbon.

The results:

And finally, here's the recipe (ancillary notes are courtesy of the husband)...the main differences are that bourbon, but no water is added, and the berries are cooked low and slow, rather than boiled with water:

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honey bourbon cranberry sauce

• 12 oz. fresh cranberries, rinsed and patted dry
  (you want to remove excess water, but the berries should be damp) 
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/3 cup bourbon
  [husband: Because everything is better with Jim Beam.]
• zest of one lemon
• zest of one medium orange
  [husband: No nutmeg or cinnamon. Seriously, it's cranberry sauce, not a Christmas candle.]

• toss the sugar and cranberries in a 4-qt. sauce pan to coat the berries as pictured above
• cover the pot, leaving the lid cracked open, and simmer the sugared cranberries over low heat for 20 to 30 minutes, until all the berries have burst and the mixture is slightly reduced
  [husband: Don't boil them. These aren't potatoes; you want to taste them.]
• add the bourbon, honey, and zest, and stir for another minute or two until the sauce has a syrup-like consistency
  (when it cools it will be much thicker) 
• remove from heat, and get the sauce into its serving bowl
• let the sauce sit at least 5–6 hours to let the bitter components in the zest & cranberries break down
• store refrigerated (sauce can be made a day ahead), but serve warm
  [husband: I don't understand why people hide the taste of cranberries by serving them cold.]

Enjoy.

Dead-simple cold-season cooking: Brussels sprouts, extra virgin olive oil, Kosher salt, coarsely ground black pepper, high and dry heat.

The crisp and steamy results:

The sprouts end up brown and crisp on the outside, tender on the inside, with a fantastically nutty/toasty cabbage-y flavor (in the good way).

Directions:

• preheat oven to 400° Fahrenheit
  (425° to 450° have also worked for me)
• wash and trim sprouts—remove the brown ends and any yellow/wilted outer leaves
• halve the sprouts—I really like to do this so they can cook more quickly and to have that pretty white-yellow-green gradation of color, but you can also roast them whole
• drizzle with olive oil to lightly coat
• season with salt and pepper to taste, mix to coat and distribute seasoning.
  (I do this right in the roasting pan/baking sheet they will cook in)
• roast in oven for 30–45 minutes or until brown and crispy on the outside
  (like roasting any vegetables, roasting them in a single layer is best. I confess I often crowd mine, and the results are fine...more steamed though.)
• serve hot

Make it now. Happy Thanksgiving.

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Found: some years ago, I eyed some Brussels sprouts at Trader Joe's and decided I needed to try this vegetable which I'd never had before. I poked around on the internet and found many recipes for roasting them. Forget steaming/boiling and the accompanying sulphurous cooking smell. Like all cruciferous veggies, I say roast these babies. Also fun: get them on the stalk.

It was at-home movie night. I felt like foregoing my usual kettle corn for something savory. I rummaged around in the pantry, then the spice cabinet. I espied the blue and yellow tin of Old Bay seasoning (beloved spice blend of Maryland, my home state; if you're not familiar with it, it's spicy, salty, with a good dose of celery seed).

Old Bay popcorn. OK. Either I was freaking brilliant, or I was getting desperate. I Googled "old bay popcorn". At least I wasn't alone—others had gone down this path before, and deemed it worthy enough to write about on the web. I proceeded with my crazy plan, and the results were delicious. Instinct told me that the combination needed a bit of melted butter, which I added the next movie night. Yes! More brilliance! Take part in the brilliance in your own home:

(I use the Orville Redenbacher instructions for stovetop popping as the foundation to the recipe.)

• 1/2 cup popcorn kernels
• 3 Tb vegetable oil
• 2 Tb unsalted butter
• 2 to 2.5 tsp Old Bay seasoning
• ...and a 4-qt heavy-bottom pan with lid

1. Measure corn and oil into the pan.
2. Cover and turn heat to medium. Leave pan lid slightly ajar to allow steam to escape.
3. While corn and oil heat, melt the unsalted butter.
4. When popping slows, remove pan from heat, and pour out the popped corn into a large serving bowl.
5. Drizzle the melted butter over the popped corn, tossing to distribute.
6. Sprinkle the Old Bay seasoning over the popcorn, tossing to distribute.
7. Yum.

You can add more butter if you like—I go pretty light with it. Delicious either way.

So originally I came across and badly wanted this pillowcase, which I stumbled across on Etsy:

But, it sold out, and also husband deemed it possibly creepy. I actually still kind of want it, but for now, I'm quite pleased with the tunic version. I'm finding myself rather into tunics lately (perhaps the Southeast Asian heritage manifesting itself, perhaps futuristic sci-fi tunic fashions are finally emerging in my taste).

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Found: while browsing etsy.com. Side note: USPS ran into a shipping snafu and James was quite nice about notifying me to let me konw he had to re-ship it.